About

The first annual Pickle Festival was held at Linwood Bicentennial Park in July of 1977 at the suggestion of Larry Chambers and supported by Terry Hoyle as a way to raise money for the park. Many cucumbers are grown in the area and the Janicke family were one of the largest briners of pickles in the Linwood area. Larry Chambers who was president of the Linwood Civic Improvement at the time contacted Pickle Packers International and they donated may pickle items for the festival.

The program for the first festival was one page and had four advertisements. The festival had fourteen blooper ball teams, a tennis tournament, anything goes contest, two parades, kiddie rides and games, and pony rides. Aunt Janes Pickle Company donated thirty five cases of jar pickles for giveaways.

In 1979 a third day was added to the Pickle Festival along with music in the beer tent by Disco John Maxwell and the first band to play was called the Side Walkers.

In 1984 Mr. Richard LaFlamme registered the name "National" to the festival and it is now called the Linwood National Pickle Festival.

Over the years events for the festival have come and gone with some of the current ones being: The Queens Pageant on Thursday night, and the car show and bike show on Saturday.

Donations of cases and other items have been graciously given by many companies over the years: Heinz Pickles, Secklers Pickles, Valasic Pickles, Freestone Pickles, Mt. Olive, Bay Valley Foods, Bay View Mr. Chips, and Pickle Packers International are but a few of them.

All monies raised from the festival are used for maintenance, mowing, and improvements of Linwood Bicentennial Park a tax exempt organization.

Thank you to Mr. Chambers for providing the information for this section.